Wall Street ended mixed on Wednesday as tech strength offset broader market weakness, with investors weighing a favorable antitrust ruling for Google against signs of labor market softening. The S&P 500 gained 0.5% and the Nasdaq rose 1%, supported by a 9.1% surge in Alphabet shares after a judge allowed the company to keep Chrome and maintain its lucrative search deal with Apple, easing fears of a forced breakup. Apple stock rose 3.8%, helping boost confidence in Big Tech's resilience despite regulatory pressures. Conversely, the Dow fell 24 points as weakness in financials and energy...
Japanese stocks are trading higher, supported by positive overnight cues from the U.S. and a decline in Treasury yields. The Nikkei Stock Average is up 0.9% at 42308.62, helped by technology and financial stocks. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is 1.1% higher, while Sumitomo Mitsui Financial and Mizuho Financial are trading up 0.7% each. Semiconductor Equipment & Materials Makers are higher with Advantest adding 2.2% and Tokyo Electron 0.4%. USD/JPY is down 0.5% at 148.06. Source: Bloomberg
Asia-Pacific markets rose Thursday following a tech rally overnight on Wall Street that lifted the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite, even as growing fears around the economy weighed on equities. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.57% in early trading, while the Topix index increased 0.41%. Over in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 benchmark climbed 0.67%. Meanwhile, South Korea's Kospi index traded 0.45% higher and the small-cap Kosdaq added 0.84%. Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood at 25,332, slightly lower than its last close of 25,343.43. Australia is set to release its...